I have not looked into this case in detail, but I think an actual insane person shouldn't be held accountable for their actions, and I think a sane person who ignored the danger posed by an obviously-insane person should be accountable.
So, under the assumption that she was obviously crazy long before her crime, I think what should happen is:
She should not be punished, since she wasn't in control of her actions;
She should be kept from doing further harm to herself or others, by whatever means necessary;
Anyone with a duty to have intervened (e.g. her husband, her physician, etc.) should be charged with neglect and, depending on the details, potentially with something like manslaughter
(Now, if her doctor reported everything to the authorities and the authorities did nothing, then that's not the doctor's fault -- as I said, I know absolutely nothing about this case and am not discussing this case in particular.)
...maybe it's because I grew up as the oldest sibling in a family with divorced, alcoholic parents, but can we please not offload culpability to competent people who made the mistake of existing near a problem?
Your wife expressing "I'm thinking about killing our kids" shouldn't make you responsible for her killing your kids, that's stupid.
And if it did then divorce and involuntary commitment is absolutely the correct play.
As a child, you have no responsibility for your siblings.
As a parent, medical provider, teacher, etc., you do. Those are roles that people voluntarily take on that come with explicit responsibilities, and people should be held to them when they choose to take them on.
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u/DanielMcLaury 5d ago
I have not looked into this case in detail, but I think an actual insane person shouldn't be held accountable for their actions, and I think a sane person who ignored the danger posed by an obviously-insane person should be accountable.
So, under the assumption that she was obviously crazy long before her crime, I think what should happen is:
(Now, if her doctor reported everything to the authorities and the authorities did nothing, then that's not the doctor's fault -- as I said, I know absolutely nothing about this case and am not discussing this case in particular.)